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PSY-30067 - Module Specification
School of Psychology
Faculty of Natural Sciences

For academic year: 2023/24 Last Updated: 13 February 2024

PSY-30067 - Individual Differences and Conceptual Issues
Coordinator: Helen Williams Room: 1.78 Tel: +44 1782 7 33664
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 6
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office: 01782 733736

Programme/Approved Electives for 2023/24

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2023/24

In this module you will be invited to think about the importance of the discipline of Psychology in informing our understanding of what it is to be human and how this impacts on our understanding of everyday experiences.
Indicative topics that you may cover in this module include: the nature of science (and psychology); consciousness and cognition in human and non-human animals; the use of psychology for manipulation and control, community action and change; understanding conflict and entrenched beliefs; and the importance of individual differences, for example, to learning, relationships, physical health, and/or mental health.

Aims
This module invites students to think about the importance of the discipline of Psychology in informing our understanding of what it is to be human and how this impacts on our understanding of everyday experiences. Students will extend their appreciation of the ways in which psychology and psychological science have developed culturally and historically, and will study how individual differences shape behaviour in personal, professional, and societal contexts.

Talis Aspire Reading List
Any reading lists will be provided by the start of the course.
http://lists.lib.keele.ac.uk/modules/psy-30067/lists

Intended Learning Outcomes

distinguish critically between different methods of enquiry in Psychology: 1
reflect upon the nature of science and the status of Psychology as a scientific discipline: 1
apply psychological findings to explain specific socio-scientific issues or the abilities of non-human animals: 1
discuss the nature of individual psychological differences in relation to aspects of everyday behaviour: 1
apply a critical approach to findings from psychological research: 1

Study hours

Teaching will consist of 12 x 2 hour synchronous in class teaching sessions (24 hours).
Independent study hours will involve students engaging with asynchronous online materials and activities (approx 12 hours), independently reading around each lecture topic (approx 36 hours) + preparing their essays (78 hours).

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Essay weighted 100%
Essay
Students will write a 3000 word essay, based on a choice of questions, that will require them to talk about research in individual differences in psychology, and how these can be related to conceptual issues and topical debates in the literature.

Please note that for the 2022/23 Academic Year programmes may be adapted to operate in accordance with a flexible, digital approach. This means that there may be some changes made to how modules are delivered and assessed. The latest information will be provided to you by your School in module handbooks. We endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes and details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/student-terms-and-conditions/

Last Updated: 13 February 2024